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⑤ Linked documents and ⑥ Audit Summary

Two smaller panels covering attachments and the closing summary.

Written by Caim Hermoso

Who this is for: Needs Manage My Audit Templates.

⑤ Linked Documents

Setting

Default

Effect

Include Linked Documents

On

Lets auditors attach supporting files to the audit as a whole

Switch off for short templates where document attachment is not needed. Note this is separate from evidence attached to individual findings — linked documents belong to the audit, evidence belongs to a finding.

⑥ Audit Summary

Setting

Default

Effect

Include Audit Summary

Off

When on, the audit ends with a narrative summary section

This is a single switch. There is no separate score or risk summary setting — what the auditor sees alongside the summary comes from the Score and Risk Rating columns you chose in ③ Checklist Columns.

The dependency warning. Switch Include Audit Summary on while the Score column is off and the panel warns you:

The Audit Summary shows scored outcomes, but this checklist has no Score column. Turn on Score in Checklist Columns, or the summary will carry no scores.

Turn on Score in ③ Checklist Columns and the warning clears. You can publish with the warning showing — the summary simply carries no score.

Switch Include Audit Summary on for anything a manager or certification body will read. The summary is where the auditor states the overall conclusion — and a report of findings without a conclusion is much harder to act on.

Related: 3.10 ③ Checklist Columns · 6.10 Writing the audit summary

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